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Post by G on Dec 13, 2009 11:49:03 GMT -5
Variants seem harder to keep up with these days than actual story lines in comics. I've always understood the appeal to variants and appreciate owning them myself, but when does it become diluted among a sea of other variants?
Variants used to mark special occasions like 1st issues, major events in the plots, 1st appearances, new story arcs. Now it seems like there are more comics with variants than without. A typical comic might have variants for issues 1-9, 11, 15, 18, 19, 21-28 and 32. How am I supposed to keep up with that??? Furthermore, it isn't just 1 variant anymore. In some cases you're getting like 5-7 variants. And then you have them in terms of rarity. Some are a 1:10 variant, 1:15, 1:20, 1:25, 1:50, 1:100. Give me a break!
The sad part is, there are completist out there who feel the need to own every comic of a particular collection. And that of course, includes variants. I almost feel variants were created with those kind of suckers in mind.
Oh and we can't forget speculators. I mean, if they have a 1:100 sketch cover variant purchased for $5, you know its an immediate $49.95 comic once in their hands.
I want to like variants more than I do. Here is where I need help with it. I need resources indicating ALL variants to all comics out there. I don't even think Overstreet is keeping up with it!
I want to see a database showcasing every comic that has a variant, a picture of each version or a brief description outlining difference for easy identification. As well as pricing or valuing information for one to easily get a grasp on.
This random outflow of variant after variant has no meaning to me anymore. I can't wade through it to tell which ones have potential and which ones dont. If variants have gone this far this fast, there needs to be great info on them. Anybody have a resource?
Otherwise, I think a reduction of variants would be great. I'm all for having variants. But there is no reason why an issue like #9 with nothing special taking place needs 5 different covers all at various price points and ratios. I miss when variants truly were special. But I know you can't ever go back so I learn to accept things as they are.
I'm just bring it up in case there are resources out there I am unaware of. What can we do to sort out variants???
I understand "Don't Buy" is a GREAT option. But for those interested, what options are available to ease the burden of the unclarity surrounding variants?
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Post by cyberstrike on Dec 13, 2009 14:27:21 GMT -5
Variants seem harder to keep up with these days than actual story lines in comics. I've always understood the appeal to variants and appreciate owning them myself, but when does it become diluted among a sea of other variants? I agree. Variants never meant anything. Other than a company trying to rip off it's customers with a bunch of covers that aren't never going to be worth more than cover price because they're not rare and even the rare ones aren't worth anything more the cover price. The ONLY times that varient covers can be justisifed: 1. If there is a varient interior i.e. Slingers #1 or Fathom vol. 1 #1. 2. If there is a gimmick cover (foil embossed, die cut) that raises the cover price and a non-gimmick cover is released at the standard price. Variants are designed for suckers, completists, and speculators. They're waste of money and trees. It was those same bastrads that nearly destroyed the comic industery. Variants are just plain stupid. |
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Post by defiant1 on Dec 13, 2009 15:59:59 GMT -5
Variants are an act of desperation. They can't get new readers, so they coax people into buying 2 copies. All it does is discourage people from being completists in the long run.
Some of the rarer variants might be even rarer than people realize. I've been told that a 1:200 variant is not the publishing ratio, but the ordering ratio. So a store that orders 10, 20 or 50 copies may be ordering aggressively and still not qualify. The number of stores that can order and sell 200 of an issue is extremely low.
We had a thread about this on the CPG board. I've already had this rant and it said basically the same thing you are saying. This is why you don't see collectors looking for complete sets of Harris Comics which had as many 12 variants or more for a single issue. Same for Avatar. It hurts them in the long run.
Defiant1
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Post by G on Dec 13, 2009 20:50:51 GMT -5
We had a thread about this on the CPG board. I've already had this rant and it said basically the same thing you are saying. This is why you don't see collectors looking for complete sets of Harris Comics which had as many 12 variants or more for a single issue. Same for Avatar. It hurts them in the long run. Well, I'm not a member over there and I didn't see it. And if I wait for myself to have nothing but an original idea, I wouldn't have much to say around here. Pretty much everyone has talked about most topics.......somewhere. It's sorta like trying to make an original riff in music. Pretty much every riff has been made somewhere else before. That being said, I still would like to hear everyone's thoughts on this over here. It seems the major consensus is pretty much how I feel. We all don't seem to care for it very much. And yet, it still continues on stronger than ever. And still yet, no one has mentioned a good resource for trying to keep up with variants. In this day and age of Overstreet, Wizard, CBG and lets not forget the internet and it's endless resources, you would think SOMEWHERE there would be someone who put together a resource to help collectors out in sorting out variants for identification and collection purposes. It seems like a problem just waiting for someone to solve it. I don't know exactly how one would go about making it happen. But if it could be solved, it would be an awesome resource on its own merits. The fact that other major names have NOT tackled this issue makes it seem that much more imposing. If it is so difficult that the major players cannot handle it. How are the rest of us going to be educated on just what exists in terms of variants? It just feels wrong not to know what exists in terms of modern comics like this. It gives me that much more of a sense of just how out of hand this really is. |
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Post by defiant1 on Dec 13, 2009 22:10:27 GMT -5
The CPG site is pretty damn good about listing variants. If they miss it, you can let them know on their forum. Unfortunately there is a delay because their admins work for free. Argus, Earl, and Shadow are some VERY knowledgeable admins. Argus likes the esoteric stuff. Shadow likes anything old... Charlton, Dell, etc. Earl is a mainstream completist, but sticks mainly with X-Men, Batman & Superman. The category I followq the most is the Publisher Sets category where each company of interest has a thread and they track who has the most issues from that publisher.
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Post by G on Dec 13, 2009 22:47:07 GMT -5
I used to be a member over there 1-2 years ago. I was with them when they changed servers and I forget what happened, but suddenly for a period there it became a bit of a hassle for me or it did something to my status that I didn't particularly care for. I guess I ended up just not going anymore.
I remember I enjoyed how vast the message board was and I really had a lot I needed to unearth over there and just never did. And I also remember being impressed by a few of the members over there who appeared knowledgeable and able to provide good resources and info. But I also noticed a mentality I didn't care for much. As well, the board seemed to be in a bad funk and lull when I was there. It contributed to me no longer coming back.
This doesn't mean I'm trying to bad mouth the board. I'm not. I think I just came at a bad time.
I never really got into their comic database. It was just the message board I seen. Perhaps the database would have me going there more if I actually had looked at it. I just never really looked at it.
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Post by defiant1 on Dec 14, 2009 8:07:01 GMT -5
I used to be a member over there 1-2 years ago. I was with them when they changed servers and I forget what happened, but suddenly for a period there it became a bit of a hassle for me or it did something to my status that I didn't particularly care for. I guess I ended up just not going anymore. I remember I enjoyed how vast the message board was and I really had a lot I needed to unearth over there and just never did. And I also remember being impressed by a few of the members over there who appeared knowledgeable and able to provide good resources and info. But I also noticed a mentality I didn't care for much. As well, the board seemed to be in a bad funk and lull when I was there. It contributed to me no longer coming back. This doesn't mean I'm trying to bad mouth the board. I'm not. I think I just came at a bad time. I never really got into their comic database. It was just the message board I seen. Perhaps the database would have me going there more if I actually had looked at it. I just never really looked at it. I found the site early. Probably back in 1997. My first web pages in 1998 were linking to their site. I've always been an advocate for a free price guide and sharing of information. I didn't start participating on their message board until after I created my Defiant site. There are definitely different levels of users there. If not for the very knowledgeable people there, I would not have gone back. There is one lesbian from Australia that annoys me. If I see her post in my threads, I'd probably quit posting there. df1 |
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Post by bigw1966 on Jan 21, 2010 11:55:32 GMT -5
My outlook on variants is that I do not waste money on them.
For one thing you cannot get them for close to cover price so you spend a lot of money on something that won't be worth it over tome.
On worth, If you are an active ebay seller, then varients are a decent way to make money. But, you have to sell it off quickly. Like while the fire is hot for the storyline it is tied to. Otherwise it won't be worth shit in a year.
Example; I bought a few varients of the Death of Captain America. I sold 3 of them at about $25 each. So that paid for all of them and gave me a good chunk of profit. I still have 4 left and they are only worth maybe $5-$10 each. And no one is interested in them.
So, I do not buy them.
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